Becoming Family
by AdrianBastion
Summary: A prequel to New Grounds. Becoming Family brings forth short snippets of the early days of Jacko and Sirens life together as they slowly become the close knit family they eventually became.
1. First Bath

**Authors Note:** Alright, so, I'll be skipping Friday updates of New Grounds in favor of working on this story. The story will continue to update on Mondays, and will return to Fridays and Mondays when this one is over. As for this story, it will update every Saturday. These chapters are not going to be exceptionally long. 2k words at minimum each chapter.

This story takes place after Siren's brought Jacko to her home. I highly recommend you read New Grounds before this or it may be confusing.

(still open to edits so don't be alarmed if lines are changed)

* * *

 _I'm not sure why I'm doing this. A spur of the moment decision, I suppose. I seem to have been making quite a few of those as of late. But that is beside the point; I've decided that I would catalog the details of my life of raising the child I found and took from the jungle. I've yet to decide on whether I will keep him permanently or not, if he proves to be more of a bother than initially believed to be, with no redeeming qualities; I've no problem sending him back to the jungle. It might be easier and more efficient to just toss him into the ocean. I'm sure the sharks would love to have the wild boy to gnaw on._

 _But, I'm getting ahead of myself. As of right now, it's been a few hours since we returned to my home in Hawaii. Getting here was no easy task. I couldn't very well take the boy onto the plane as he has no records of birth, ID, or even a passport. Red flags would had been waved if I tried to smuggle him aboard, and I have no patience for the wild behavior and excitement he would no doubt caused being so high up in the sky for the first time. We took a boat, it was easier to smuggle him onto a boat. Well, we initially stowed away on it, but by the end of the night I had completely hijacked the vessel and did away with the crew. In other news, I now have an average sized ship docked on the beach outside my home. It was no issue getting it here, having control over the currents can be a drastic aid to transportation, and the boy was behaved well enough._

 _I've yet to come up with a name for this boy. It's becoming apparent that I can't just call him 'boy' and 'brat' forever, nor can I just call him Tarzan or Mowgli. I might get sued by Disney if I did that, and I'd rather not deal with that demonic corporation. Besides, the people in the town might start asking questions if I didn't have an actual name for him, and it's not like I can just have him never leave the house, I already know that wouldn't work._

 _Why did I even bring him back home with me?_

* * *

Closing her journal, Siren heaved a sigh. Her first entry since buying the useless book and it didn't have anything of important to be written in it. She boredly turned to look at where the boy was playing happily in the sand, kicking up dirt and dashing under it. To think just a handful of hours ago they had still been on a ship heading home. She hadn't gotten much of anything done yet other than let the boy get used to his new home. At least he seemed to be enjoying himself here.

Somehow he'd managed to already tear up the pair of pants she'd gotten him. His sole article of clothing tattered and torn like it was years old. When the boy got to playing, he really did not hold anything back. At least, Siren thought that he was playing. She wasn't really sure.

She heaved another sigh as she stood from her seat and walked down to where the boy was rolling around in the sand like some kind of hyper puppy. "Alright, runt," she said as the boy perked up to attention, crouching before springing forward and closing the distance between them. She waited until he was at her side before continuing to speak, "Since you've already destroyed the pants I gave you, it's a clear sign that we need to get you some more clothes," she explained, and hopefully pairs that he wouldn't destroy. She paused as she took another look at his appearance, clicking her tongue in dissatisfaction, "But first, I think you need to take a bath."

"Aaaaru?" he cocked his head to the side, clearly not understanding what Siren had said. "Aaah!"

She snatched up one of his hands, holding it firm in her own as she led and pulled the boy into the house. The kid desperately needed to get a bath before she took him _anywhere_. More importantly, he needed to be cleaned up before he stunk up her house.

It was a short walk to the bathroom, and after pushing him in there and closing the door, she got to work gathering up all that she would need. Towels, washcloths, soap and the such. The kid slipped past her to crouch on the floor by the heater, watching her as she started the water and waited for the tub to fill up. Siren could only hope that he wouldn't be too much of a hassle to bathe. Maybe after the first time he'd understand how to do it on his own.

"Okay, kid," she said when the bathtub finished filling, gesturing for the boy to come over. "Strip. You can't take a bath while in clothes."

When the kid gave her a blank stare, Siren rolled her eyes and reached over to tug at his pants. He made a noise of indignation as she forced them down and forcibly moved his legs so she could toss them in the dirty clothes hamper. "Clothes. Off." The witch repeated when she was done, hoping that it would help him to understand what she meant.

She didn't even wait for him to get in the tub on his own. Instead, the woman scooped the boy up in her arms and dropped him in the warm water, using magic to control the splash zone and keep the water from hitting the floor.

"Graaah!" the kid snarled when he resurfaced, shaking his shaggy hair about to try and free himself of the droplets of water. His eyes locked on her and he bared his teeth in annoyance, only to get a sizable wave of water to hit him right in the face.

"Watch that attitude of yours," Siren warned, bringing forth another batch of water to dunk over his head, making sure that his hair was nice and wet. Siren couldn't help but make a face when she saw the once clear water already starting to take on a discolored tint. Considering she doubted he'd ever taken a proper bath before in his life, she was probably going to need to keep putting in fresh water.

Pulling the plug on the drain, Siren turned on the showerhead. That should keep fresh water coming in and the dirtier water draining.

With this set up, the kid seemed to actually enjoy it well enough. He had a rather large smile on his face as he splashed at the water and purposely angled his body so the water from the showerhead would hit him in the face. For what must had been the hundredth time since meeting him, Siren couldn't help but note what a weird kid he was.

Grabbing and wetting a cloth, she lathered some soap onto it. "Okay, hold still," she warned, grabbing hold of the boy by his chin and forcing him to look at her, "and, keep your eyes closed." With that she began scrubbing at his face.

He squirmed a little in her grasp, whining and howling as she wasn't exactly _gentle_ in her approach. But, she couldn't be gentle when she was determined to scrub all the filth off his face and clean out his pores. Within seconds she could see his face, reddening from the force she was using, clearing up of the dirt that had been caked on for God only knew how long.

After a few minutes of rubbing at his face, behind his ears and at his neck, Siren was rather pleased with her work on the skin there and put the washcloth down. Bringing forth a tendril of clear water, she carefully washed away any leftover soap suds, more gently this time around. At least the boys' howls had quieted down to annoyed grumbles.

"Onto the hair," she said this more to herself than to the runt as she grabbed a bottle of shampoo, putting in a bit more of the green substance on her hand than she usually did for herself. The boys' hair was much filthier than hers ever got, not to mention it was almost twice as long as her own, rather short, blue strands. Logically, she supposed he'd need more shampoo than her. Rubbing it in her hands for a moment, she once again had the kid adjust his seating so his back was to her.

Slapping her hands onto his head, she began to massage the shampoo into his hair. This seemed to be something the kid liked more than the face wash as he purred. Siren couldn't blame him, having ones hair washed was a pretty good feeling in her opinion.

She was careful as she threaded her fingers through his hair, the white foam started to form before long as she continued to carefully wash his hair. Firmly digging the tips of her fingers into his scalp, she mused for a moment if she should buy lice shampoo or anything for ticks. She couldn't see any, nor could she feel any, but it never hurt to be extra careful.

Rinsing it out, she moved onto the conditioner. It helped greatly at his matted hair, and when she was done with his hair, Siren was rather surprised by just how pale it was. Not white, but close enough to the tone, a white-blonde to be more precise when all the grease and dirt was washed away.

Well, it wasn't like it was abnormal to be born with interesting hair colors, and she doubted he could get his hands on hair dye.

"Aaaaruu!" the kid howled, ducking under the water before Siren could finish, little bubbles of air rising up to meet her. What was he doing, some kind of game?

She waited until his need for air forced him to rise out of the water. When he finally did, she slapped him in the face with water.

"What do you think you're doing" she asked, waiting for him to respond.

Wide eyes stared back at her, then the kids face broke into a grin and, like a water gun, he spat water out of his mouth right into her face. She reeled back slightly, wiping the water off her face, having been to surprised by the action to even take control over the water to stop him. "Why you!" she spluttered, bringing forth a tendril from the tub and doing the same to him with it.

The boy squealed in delight, splashing back at her with unhinged laughter.

"God, you're so weird," Siren snickered, hand over her mouth as she gave a small smile. It felt so… weird. To smile. To laugh. Yet, this is why she decided to take this kid in, he was making her feel those things. He was making her _feel_ again.

Taking the washcloth back in her hand, she got to work finishing up the task at hand.

When the bath was all done and she had him wrapped in a fluffy towel, she put him on a stool and grabbed a pair of scissors.

"Okay, we're going to need do something about your hair," She mused, running a comb through the wild locks. "It's far to long, it's only going to get in the way."

"Aaaru?" he questioned, staring at her reflection in the mirror before them.

Giving him a light pat on the shoulder, Siren nodded as though she understood what he had said, "Yep. Gotta cut it all off."

She made the first snip at the base of his neck, carefully making sure not to cut too short. It took a while, but she eventually found a rhythm and had his hair coming out in locks. Thankfully the kid remained still for the whole ordeal, watching curiously in the mirror. After a minute or so, Siren brought forth some water to obscure his vision, wanting to surprise him a little with the new look he'd have.

It didn't take very long for her to finish.

Taking a comb, she carefully ran it through his hair, getting out any stray stands. Smiling at her handiwork she quickly ruffled his hair a little to give it a bit of a messy look and snapped her fingers and the water fell into the sink, and the kid was allowed to freely look at his new hair style.

"Aaaaah!" he breathed, mouth open as he leaned forward, closer to the mirror. Eyes were wide, and he looked as though he almost didn't recognize himself anymore.

Siren couldn't help the smug look on her face, "Yeah, kiddo, that's you," she confirmed, "Amazing what a haircut and bath can do, huh?"

Barking, actually barking, the kid jumped from his seat and bounced on his heels, "Aaahra! Aaahra!" he howled, lunging forward and wrapping his tiny arms around Siren as the towel fell to the ground without anything to keep it up.

She recoiled a little, "H-hey, I didn't say you could hug me!" she grumbled, trying in vain to pry the kid off her. "Come on, at least get the towel back on!"

"Aaahra! Aaahaaah aaahra!" he responded, burying his face into her side, well at least she could say for certain he liked the haircut. Not that Siren could really say she liked the hug. But, she supposed she could learn to get used to it.


	2. Second Clothing

**Authors Note:** Sorry this was a tad late, I was busy all week (and today) babysitting a toddler nephew who's just far to energetic and packing. This chapter wound up being a bit more rushed than I wanted, sorry about that, and I might go back and edit it when I'm settled back in my dorm.

* * *

 _Another entry, it seems. I'm still rather new to the whole idea of recording thoughts and opinions in a journal (I refuse to call it a 'diary', I still have some dignity to uphold) but should his behavior improve to a more civilized nature in the future, I would like to be able to look back and see how much progress was made. However, I may still grow bored of this and just throw the journal itself into the ocean. Who knows. The ocean is known to be unpredictable and mine own nature not too dissimilar to the aforementioned. But, I'm getting a tad derailed on the topic at hand._

 _The child, whom I still have no proper name for but reacts well enough to 'kid' and 'runt' when spoken too, has not been too much of trouble. I've given him a bath since my last entry and he was very well behaved. He, yet again, managed to make me smile and laugh. It is for reasons like that why I even keep him. He's still managing to make me feel something, something positive. I feel as though I may, given some time, grow to feel some level of fondness for the child in the future. I suppose if that does happen, then maybe I'm not as 'broken' as my deceased therapist claimed me to be. Or perhaps I am and he is just the sole exception to my misanthropic nature as he is as far from 'human' in behavior as a person can get. He's more like an animal of some kind, not to say I've always loved animals I just tolerated them more than people. Likely due to their lack of intelligence and simple natures._

 _I plan to take him out shopping when this entry is complete. It will give me an idea of how he reacts when surrounded by human civilization. I've realized the small town near where I found him was far too poor an example as it was a very poor, third-world type of town lacking much of the modernity (note to self; check for a better word and phrasing than 'modernity'. I feel stupid just thinking it) that much of the world possesses. If he reacts positively, then that is one less thing I'll have to work with him on in terms of adapting._

 _Other than that, we do need to get him some much needed necessities. I don't have a spare toothbrush._

* * *

The kid bounded about, a grin that could split a face as he ran from window to window of the stores around them. It was as though he'd never seen so many things all at once. Then again, considering he'd spent his entire life in a jungle, so seeing a shopping district was probably like Disney World to most kids.

As was expected of an October day, there was plenty of Halloween decorations out and about. Costumes on display, skeletons and bats hanging in the windows of all the shops in the small mall.

The boy was dashing from window to window, his mouth parted open in silent awe and his eyes wide as saucers. He let out a small animal like noises as he pawed at one of the pumpkins sitting out by the door curiously.

"That's a Jack-'o-lantern, kid," Siren explained as she pushed the door to the shop open, it was one of the strangely laid out mall shops that had an actual door rather than an open entrance, going on to explain even though the kid probably couldn't understand, "You carve a pumpkin, put a candle in it and voila, you have a dumb pumpkin decoration that will rot away in a few days."

He blinked at her.

Shaking her head, Siren nudged the kid inside with her foot. "Get a move on, already," she grumbled.

With a giggle, the boy scampered on into the store. Siren could only roll her eyes at his energetic way as she stepped into the clothing store.

Personally, she didn't like being here. She found clothing to be too constrictive, especially when she shifted to her aquatic form. It was harder to manipulate soaked shirts and pants and put them back on before taking a solid form. Much easier to cover herself up with bandages, at least with them she could put them to work when they were wet and wrap them around herself again when she took a solid form without any trouble.

But, she had no choice but to go with a shirt and pants when in town. She'd get far too much unwanted attention if she went around with just a series of bandages covering her up. Besides, the kid needed clothes.

It was remarkable how much better he looked after his bath and haircut. He almost looked like a normal child. If normal kids were shirtless and spoke only in a series of growls and hums.

Before the boy could run off too far, Siren took hold of him by the shoulder and pulled him back to her side, "Okay, kiddo. We're getting you some clothes." She informed him.

"Aru!"

"Yeah, aru."

There weren't too many people shopping today, so Siren and the boy pretty much had the store to themselves. Which was fine by her, fewer problems with other shoppers. She kept his hand In hers as they made their way to the children's section. Only then did she let go, but made sure to keep a close eye on the boy.

Honestly, she wasn't even sure what kind of clothes he'd like to wear, though by his expression it probably wouldn't matter. The boy's eyes were shining, though, so it was a good sign that he was enjoying himself. Not that she could understand why anyone would enjoy something as bothersome as clothes shopping. It was just a dull activity of looking through clothes for something you like, then more searching for something your size. Add in any budgets you're bound to and the annoyingly overly helpful employees who ask you every five minutes if 'you need any help'. Then there were the ones who completely ignored you when you _did_ need help.

Siren just... _really_ didn't like clothes shopping.

But it was a necessity, that much she would begrudgingly accept.

"Just, if you like something, point it out. We'll see if we can find anything in your size," she grumbled as she began leading the boy around the racks.

As they walked through the rows of clothing, she made sure to grab a few packs of underwear and socks, necessary things that he was getting no matter what. As for outfits, the kid seemed to like everything. Or rather, he was just amazed by everything. Siren made sure to grab a few shirts and pants he seemed particularly keen on.

Considering he had no wardrobe previously, Siren was well aware that they were going to have to buy a rather large amount of clothing for him. Best get everything now rather than multiple trips. Siren wasn't sure she'd be able to stay sane if she had to make more shopping trips just for clothing. And that wasn't even everything they had to get. She still needed to find things to keep the runt occupied, like toys and such. Maybe a few books to help him catch up with the rest of his age group. She'd rather like to have him speaking words before the year was up.

"Arrrruah! Arruah!" he barked, bouncing on his heels.

Siren's expression turned to one of curiosity as he seemed rather _excited_ and looked up at the article of clothing he was focused on. It was a simple gray dress shirt for a child. Nothing fancy about it. Light gray fabric with several black buttons down the front, as plain as could be, but the kid seemed to like it.

"Okay, if that's what you want," Siren shifted through the many shirts until she found one his size and placed it in the growing pile in her arms. When she was done, the kid scampered off yet again leaving her to just lazily follow.

Siren wasn't sure if he understood really what they were doing, or was just choosing things based on some unknown reason, but he quickly found several more pieces of clothing he rather liked more than anything else he found. A pair of brown khaki shorts was what came next. He tried putting those on his head after Siren got it off the hanger, but she managed to snag it from him before he got too far. Siren decided to grab a pair of pants suspenders after he got one from a rack and nearly got himself tied up in it.

Deciding that was enough clothing, she dragged the boy off to the register, dropping the pile of clothing onto the counter. When the cashier tried to throw her one of those fake cheerful smiles, Siren just responded with an expression of being dead inside. It was enough to make her flinch and recoil as she began ringing up the clothes and depositing them into bags.

Paying up and grabbing the multiple bags, Siren rolled her eyes as a 'Have a nice day' was hollered at her from the register.

"Okay, toyland is next," she said as she adjusted her grip on the many bags.

If the kid was excited with the clothing, he was going to be a regular batch of hyper at all the toys. Or, maybe he'd react no differently. These were all equally new to the feral kid. She doubted he'd even know what any of the toys are. Maybe she could get away with even less that way.

As expected, he didn't react any differently among the toys, though the boy did fancy the stuffed animals a bit. Siren figured it was because he thought they might be _real_ animals and had to keep him from trying to eat one of them, but because he did start chewing on a stuffed bunny she had to buy it whether she wanted to or not.

They spent quite a bit of less time in the toy store than they did with the clothing and upon leaving she had two bags of toys and games for the kid to enjoy. The boy in question was following beside her, hugging the rabbit she got him quite happily. After learning that it was a fake rabbit, he quickly latched onto it. She wasn't going to bother and ask why.

Siren was rather pleased with the books she got him. They may have been for toddlers, but they were books designated to help a person learn to read and speak. He was going to need it certainly, and she could only pray that it would make teaching him more bearable. There were even a few coloring books and books on numbers mixed in there too, for when she got bored of trying to get him to speak words. She was most certainly going to get bored of trying to make him speak words.

As they were leaving the store, the kid made a complete beeline to one of the pumpkins again. Barking incessently, even after it got muffled by him taking hold of the stuffed bunny in his mouth. Siren just stood idly, watching with curiosity as he began poking and prodding the rather large jack-'o-lantern with interest. She wasn't sure what was going on in that small mind of his and wanted to see what he was planning.

The boy dropped the bunny toy onto the ground and pealed off the top ot the pumpkin. He stuck his hand it it and fished around for a moment before yanking the fake, lightbulb candle out and dropping it to the floor next to the bunny. It was a good thing there weren't many people in that area of the mall, Siren supposed. Surely they would had been throwing a fit if they saw the kid messing with the decorations.

The kid gurgled and babbled some nonsence as he lifted up the pumpkin, messing with it in his hands as he rotated and examined it from all angles. Then he raised it high in the air, and with the dumbest smile imaginable, he dropped it right onto his head.

Being as big as it was, the hole cut into it was wide enough for his head to fit through without much problem. The kid began laughing with pure glee as he picked back up his bunny and scampered back to Sirens side. She could see his eyes through the upside down smile carved in it, and his own grin through the eyeholes of the upside down pumpkin. He seemed rather proud of himself for what he'd done, wearing the pumpkin like it was some kind of hat, as though he did the smartest thing ever.

Siren couldn't help but snicker at how ridiculous he looked.

"What, are you a Jack-'o-lantern now?" she asked as she put down the bags and crouched down in front of him. Adjusting the pumpkin he wore so the face wasn't as lopsided anymore. "Maybe I ought to call you that? Jack O'Lantern?" she asked him then paused, "Actually, no, if I remember right there's already an O'Lantern. But, I think the pumpkin suits you, so how about Jacko Lantern instead?"

The kid blinked at her and began howling in what she could only assume was glee. " _Aaaahoooo! Aaah, aah, aaaahoooo!_ " the boy let out.

Shaking her head, Siren picked back up the bags and cast a look around them, people were starting to wander over, drawn by the howls and were bound to notice his odd apperance soon. "Come on, kid... Jacko, let's get back home."


	3. Three Words

_The kid doesn't know how to work doors. I find this hilarious._

 _I've never met anyone who didn't know how to open a door until today. I just killed off ten minutes watching him try to figure out how the doors in the house works. He failed. But it was amusing to watch him try._

 _On a different note. He, and thank God for this, knows not to take a dump or piss on the floor. He's not bathroom trained, but I think he understands the house as a den or something. I feel like I own a dog or something because I have to let him go outside for him to do his business. No idea where he's going, and I've been having to be careful that I don't walk into anything nasty._

 _I'm going to try training him to use the toilet today. He's not a complete idiot so I'm hoping it doesn't take long for him to catch on. I'm also going try and teach him table manners today. Like eating with silverware rather than his bare hands. I just find it disgusting, especially since I can't always guarantee his hands are clean before he eats. I don't know what he touches between washing them and eating._

 _Just thinking of the germs, I just had a shiver run up my spine. There disgusting._

* * *

The kitchen wasn't a necessarily large one. Siren's house, in general, wasn't a large one. It was meant for two people, sure, but that didn't mean that the kitchen was large enough two have two people moving about all over the place. The boy, Jacko, didn't understand her when she tried to get him to stay out of the kitchen while she prepared dinner.

He was following her on her heels like a kitten, butting his head against her calf every now and then and grinning stupidly. He'd try now and then to see what Siren was doing, but he was far too small to be able to reach the counter. The witch had no doubts that while he couldn't see what she was doing, he could certainly smell the food.

"Be patient, dinner will be done before long," she assured him, though her words fell on dumb ears. They'd made very little progress in speaking but that didn't mean they couldn't communicate. While he couldn't understand the words, he could understand her tone clearly. Because of that, Siren had to be very careful how she spoke to him. A firm no and a light swat or shove and he understood or a gentle yes with a pat on the back and he got the picture.

Jacko whined and butted his head against her leg as he tried to peer onto the counter yet again to no avail, sticking out his lower lip in a pout.

He was dressed in the shorts and button up today, it appeared to be his favorite outfit from the clothing they got. Siren still didn't understand why, but it gave him a childish attempt at being formal appearance. But she doubted the clothes would be in nice condition for long considering how roughly he played outside.

She took a glance at his body. His arms were still scrawny and fatless from his time in the jungle, and she would have had no trouble seeing his ribs if his shirt was off. Because of his malnourished diet, Siren was trying to incorporate as much as she could in the meals she made to help him recover the minerals, vitamins and so on that he never got. Not that he ever complained about what she made. It was by far better than anything he could have gotten in the jungle, and he ate every last bite on his plate, often asking for seconds.

Turning her attention back to the counter, Siren resumed the dull task of cutting up the peeled potatoes. Her motions were robotic as she cut them up into portioned chunks and slipped them into a bowl. The bowl already had a table spoon and teaspoons of parsley, salt, basil, garlic, rosemary and red pepper flakes, all it needed was the potatoes and her to add in the olive oil. Then she could put it in the oven and let it cook. The chicken breasts were already cooking and should be done soon, and while the potatoes cooked Siren intended to heat up some carrots too.

A good, filling and most importantly, _healthy_ meal. She hoped he liked chicken.

While Siren was finishing up the potatoes, Jacko wandered off to explore the rest of the house. She didn't pay him much mind as he did that, there was nothing he could really get into, and usually he just curled up on the couch to nap.

That reminded her, the bed she ordered should be arriving by the end of the week. She ought to finish clearing out that old spare bedroom for him.

The oven dinged just as Siren was putting down the wooden spoon after mixing the potatoes, oil and rest of the ingredients in the bowl. Grabbing a pair of oven mitts, she quickly and carefully pulled the tin-foil covered honey-baked chicken breasts from the oven and put the tray on top of the stove to stay warm while she replaced them with the potatoes.

"Now all that's left is the carrots," that was the easy part. Siren had a can of sliced carrots she could just toss in a pot and cook up on the stove. Maybe add some spices too.

She was drawn from her task by the sound of claws at the door. Turning her head, she watched in amusement as Jacko struggled with the door. Nails clawing at it as he pushed, wiggling the knob uselessly in a vain attempt to get it open. His face was scrunched up in irritation and frustration at the doors lack of cooperation.

Stifling a laugh, Siren wiped her hands down on a towel and strode over to him. "You're using the knob at least, but you've got to pull the door," she explained as she gently pushed him away and opened the door for him.

Giving her a big smile, Jacko dashed out into the yard, barking happily as he made a beeline for the tree and begin circling it.

Siren watched him a few moments more as he began climbing the tree before she returned to cooking, leaving the door slightly ajar so he could get in without any problems. If he was still out playing when dinner was done, she'd call him inside.

Turning on the faucet, Siren manipulated the water into going into the pot on the stove, waiting until it was full to turn it off. While the carrots began cooking and the potatoes backed, Siren walked into the dining room and got the table ready with a damp cloth to wipe down the surface and got some plates on it along with forks and knives.

Well, knife, singular, she carefully took the knife from where Jacko would sit. She'd cut the chicken for him, best not to let him deal with sharp implements just yet.

An oven mitt was placed on the table for the potatoes and carrots as to not burn the table surface. Pleased with its arrangement, Siren turned to check on the timer. The carrots were done and the potatoes had five more minutes to them.

Siren grabbed the plates and brought them to the kitchen. Placing the chicken breasts on each one and carefully cutting Jacko's up into smaller chunks before putting them back on the table. Steam rose from the hot meat, still plenty warm from the tinfoil they'd been wrapped in and a crispy golden brown hue. She quickly brought the carrots over to the table and the same with the potatoes when they were done.

The witch had to say she was proud of how this came out. The food looked great and smelled great.

With a smug little expression of self-satisfaction, Siren headed to the front door. The sun was already starting to set, casting a dim light on the yard and beach. For a moment Siren didn't see Jacko anywhere but soon spotted him high up in one of the trees.

"Jacko! Dinner time!" she yelled up to him.

" _Aaaahooo! Aaaahooo!"_ Jacko howled back, doubtful he understood what she said, but was coming down anyways because she'd called to him. He shimmied down the tree with about as much grace as a three legged deer trying to dance and scampered up to her with a big smile on his dirt smudged face.

Of course he'd be dirty after coming in. Taking one of his hands in her own, Siren led him inside and shut the door behind them. First, they'd have to get him all washed up and then he could eat. He, thankfully, didn't struggle much as he was dragged off to the bathroom, but he did cast a longing look in the direction of the food.

* * *

By the time dinner was over, Siren was full and she assumed Jacko was too. He, as usual, ate everything on his plate and even got a second helping of carrots and potatoes. She was glad he was eating. Even more, it seemed he had a liking to chicken. She swore she saw Heaven on his face when he took a bite.

It gave her a sense of pride.

"Well, I suppose you're ready to go off and play again," she said as she collected their plates, pausing to grab a napkin and rub away some stray milk from his cheeks.

The boy grinned as she finished wiping his face clean and gave a big nod when she pulled away, "Saynyu!" he squeaked.

Siren nearly dropped the napkin.

"What did you just say?" she asked slowly, had her ears been playing tricks on her? It almost sounded like he had attempted to say 'thank you'. "Could you repeat that for me?" she asked him slowly, wanting to see if he could say it again.

Jacko blinked at her, clearly confused by this and tilted his head to the side, "Sayn…yu, Siyen?"

It wasn't perfect, the words were horribly and grotesquely mutilated, but they were words. Words he was clearly trying to convey. Thank you, Siren.

She could feel a strange clench in her chest beneath her ribcage. A strange warmth, one that was becoming more familiar the more time she spent with Jacko, washed over her. A smile found its way to her face as she dropped the napkin onto the table and rubbed his head a bit, rustling his hair, "You're welcome."

He smiled when she said that and butted his head against her side, a deep rumble in his chest much like a kitten purring in content.

She let him stay there hugging her and purring and found she would have been more than content to stay there longer but had to pry him off her after a while. She needed to get the dishes cleaned before anything dried and became a pain to wash off. Jacko was a bit miffed at being pushed away but followed on her heels as Siren finished gathering the dishes and headed into the kitchen.

"How about we watch a movie or something tonight?" Siren offered, he just smiled and barked. Taking that as a yes, she gave a small laugh as she rinsed off the dishes and loaded up the washer and dropped in a cascade pod before starting it up. "In that case, I'm just going to go get it all ready then."

Heading into the living room, Siren started up the TV and made a quick detour to her own room where she tended to keep her movie collection.

What one would a kid like? Siren didn't exactly have a large selection of kid-friendly movies, many of hers tended to be monster films or B-Rated horrors. Not the kind of flicks she wanted to show a little kid. She ought to go buy some kid films next time she went into town. Maybe Shrek. Kids liked Shrek, right?

It took some scrounging, but Siren did manage to find something. The kid might like Jurassic Park. Well, there was only one way to find out.

By the time she returned, Jacko was already curled up on the couch waiting patiently for her to return. He perked up quickly when Siren approached, smiling as dumb as usual. "Si-yen! Siyen!" he yapped.

Hearing him using words sent another warm feeling through her, a sense or pride.

"Hey, squirt," she returned as she popped in the DVD and collapsed onto the couch next to him. Jacko quickly scrambled over and fell into her lap like an oversized cat, "Hey now, who said you could do use me as a bed?" she joked as she began petting him with one hand, using the other to go through the menue options on the screen.

He just giggled as he nuzzled into her, staring intently at the TV. "Siyen! Sayn yu, Siyen!" he crowed happily, even though that wasn't the right phrase to use at the time.

Shaking her head, Siren just let herself enjoy this as the movie started.

* * *

 **Authors Note:** I ended up reading way too many health food articles, recipes and watching cooking videos just for the one scene where she makes dinner.


	4. What Not To Eat

**Authors Note:** I am _so_ sorry for the missing updates last week. I sort of needed a short break from this and _New Grounds_ to focus on college, I also got pretty distracted in my free time by working on another project of mine involving Jacko. I know excuses aren't worth jack, and I am sorry for this chapter coming out so later. but I hope you enjoy it.

I'm going to try and get some regular updates back up by next week.

* * *

It was well past midnight when Siren woke up. Groggy and tired, her bleary eyes blinked against the moonlight that bathed her skin. She'd had a rather unlikable dream that night, and even now as she laid in her bed, the aftermath still left her tense and antsy. She ground her teeth as she rolled over onto her side, pressing a pillow hard against her head, trying to block out the world around her.

After putting Jacko, who was quite attached to saying her name, to bed, she herself tried to do the same. But restless dreams of people she hated plagued her.

Heaving a sigh, Siren rolled back over onto her back, tossing the pillow to the side as she stared up at her ceiling. Listening hard she could hear the waves even through her walls, could feel the water around her. It was comforting and soothing, but not enough to make her fall back asleep after already waking up.

She took a deep breath, pushing herself up and stretching. Instead of her usual bandage wrappings, Siren was actually wearing a pair of pajamas, a powder blue night shirt that reached her knees. One of the few articles of clothing she had that didn't feel constricting. Slipping out of bed, blankets bunching up at the edge, she began slipping over to her second bathroom. It was small, just a toilet and sink. Turning on the faucet, Siren cupped her hands under the running water and splashed her face a few times with the frigid, cold water. Eyes closed, she reached over to the rack and grabbed a hold of a tower and began patting her face dry.

When she lowered the towel and looked at her face, she could see the usual dead expression that was almost always set in stone on her features. But, there was something different. Her face was… softer. Even Siren had to notice she didn't look as dead or angry as she used to.

Was it because of Jacko?

Discarding her towel back onto the rack, Siren ran a hand through her hair. Maybe, just maybe, this idea by keeping the kid wasn't all that great. It was going to blow up in her face before long, she knew that. Everything always did, it was like she lit a match herself right under a leaking gas tank. It was going to blow up, and it was going to be bad. The only thing was the question of 'when'.

He'd already started saying her name and a couple of other words he was picking up from her. It made her chest do funny things when he spoke and smiled at her. He did not know that she was a bad person. But, wasn't that innocence the whole reason why she decided to take him with her in the first place? He wasn't toxic like the rest of this world and didn't even care about what she could do.

That was probably going to change when he understood the world better.

"God damn it," Siren growled, leaning over the counter, resting her elbows on the cold countertop so she could bury her face into her hands. Where were these thoughts even coming from? It must be from the stress. If she was right about Jacko, then he'd prove to be different from everyone else.

There was a scuffling noise from deeper into the house and long whine. Raising her head up from her hands to glance at the door, she raised an eyebrow. Jacko. Probably just rummaging around and trying to grab something to eat, or having weird dreams of his own.

She rubbed at her eyes a bit yet again before finally pushing herself away from the sink. Maybe she could go and try to get some sleep again.

Retreating back into her bedroom, she glanced out the window, at the stars shining above and the moon sniggering at everyone below it. She'd be able to think a bit more clearly tomorrow in the morning. Her anxiety over keeping Jacko or not, that'd just pass, right?

As she laid back down in her bed, another whine filled the air from in the house. It sounded… weak. Siren frowned as she sat back up, staring out the doorway, unsure what she should do. Maybe she should check up on him…?

Getting out of bed for the second time that night, Siren flicked on the hall light to give some illumination to the house as she crept down the hall and down the stair. The living room light she also turned on, but when she looked at the couch, the kid wasn't there. His pillow was there, the blankets were fallen to the floor and the bunny plushie she bought him was on the floor by the blankets. Strange, so, he wasn't asleep and having a nightmare.

Approaching the kitchen, she heard more whines, much louder now as she got closer. A feeling of unease washed over her as she turned on the lights. Everything looked in order from where she stood, but she could hear noise from the other side of the kitchen island, and that didn't help to soothe her raising concern.

She was cautious as she approached, and when she did see what was going on, her heart stopped for a minute.

Jacko was curled up on the floor, moaning softly in obvious pain. One hand was wrapped around his midsection, the other was under him, claws out and digging into the tiled floor as he gnashed and ground his teeth against the pain. There was vomit on the floor, she could see a little blood mixed in with it. The cupboard under the sink was wide open and the culprit of this mess was clear by the opened cleaning chemicals.

Oh, God.

He must have eaten some of them, thinking there were a food or something. Stupid! Why would he think that any of the things kept under there would be edible? Stupid! Stupid! Stupid little boy!

No, of course he wouldn't know! She never told him that they were dangerous and not to be eaten. What he knew was that Siren got food from the cupboards. If he wanted a snack, the ones of the walls were she kept everything was out of reach, but the one under the sink was easy to access. He wouldn't know that not everything in a cupboard was food.

"What do I do, what do I do?" she whispered as she knelt down beside him. What of it did he eat, what of the cleaning supplies did he not eat? How was she supposed to help him? Panic was quickly setting in as she looked around wildly, desperate for something she might be able to do. The boy let out another high pitched whine and began coughing violently.

"Jacko! Jacko, you're going to be okay, okay?" she assured him, but she herself wasn't all to certain about that.

Maybe she could use her magic to… purge his stomach? No, she'd never done something like that and didn't even know if that would work, there was no guarantee she wouldn't make things worse either. What if she got him to use his own magic to burn away the chemicals inside of him instead?

Hell no! Who knew if fire would even do that? Weren't some chemicals flammable, and what if that's what he drank? She didn't know the extent of his magic and how immune he was to fire, was it just his own flames or every type of fire? It wasn't a thing she was testing here and now.

Think, Siren, think!

The hospital. She, she had to take him to the hospital. As much as Siren hated people and didn't trust them, doctors included, this was the best shot she had if she wanted Jacko to get better. She'd have to put aside her own feelings for him right now.

"Jacko, I'm picking you up, okay?" she warned him. As soon as she laid a hand on him, he let out a whimper. How was she supposed to do this? She didn't want to hurt him any more than what he was already going through. Hesitantly, Siren scooped Jacko up into her arms, feeling… _something_ in her chest hurt when he continued to whimper. "Just, relax, I'm getting you to a doctor," she tried to soothe him, but her own tone was just as panicked.

Kicking the door open, Siren began running, cradling the boy against her chest as she took off down to the beach. It was a thirty-minute walk on the dirt and gravel path to the nearest town, and Siren didn't _have_ half an hour. She could get by so much quicker in the water, and she'd take whatever would get them to a hospital the fastest.

When they got to the shore she realized a problem. She couldn't very well drag him under the water to carry him off to the closest town, unlike her, he couldn't breathe under water. She scanned the shore before settling on a raft from the boat they took to get here. A flick of her wrist and it was cut from the side and falling into the water. She wasted no time carrying Jacko over to the small raft and easing him into it. He groaned at the movement, eyes clenched tight and sweat forming on his skin.

"Just relax," she said yet again, pushing the boat into the water and easing herself into it, pulling the boy next to her close as the oceans currents worked to push them along the coast to her destination.

Jacko squirmed against her side, and while they were in the raft she had to lean him over the side so he could vomit again, coughing and gaging as he retched up bright blue chemicals into the oceans water.

It took them maybe ten minutes to drive the raft into the sands of a towns beach. Siren might have been a bit rough when she grabbed Jacko from the raft and took off running along the sand. He looked pale, maybe that was the moonlight, please let it just be the moonlight on him.

Everything started to blur at that point for her. She reached the hospital, doctors took Jacko from her and she almost decked one of them in the face for taking him from her before holding back. They were going to help him. She didn't even know what she wrote down for the paperwork forms that was handed to her after Jacko was carted off to one of the rooms.

Sitting in the chair, Siren tapped her fingers against the side anxiously. It may have only been a minute, but, she was already impatient and wanted to know if he was better. As though to mirror her own anxiety, the water in the fish tank by the reception desk began to grow rough.

Taking a deep breath, Siren closed her eyes and tried to calm herself down, to no avail. She got up for a second to snag a pen and paper from the front desk, writing down her thoughts might help to channel some of the anxiety, or maybe it'd make it worse. She didn't care, she just needed something to occupy her mind while she waited for the news.

 _This is my fault. I'm such an idiot. Why did I ever think I could ever take care of a kid? I don't know the first thing on how to keep one safe and healthy and today has just proved that. I kill and destroy, I shouldn't have pretended like I knew what I was doing. Because of my own incompetence, because I didn't keep an eye on him, he drank cleaning chemicals. Because I never told him not to do that._

 _Damn it. I should have known this was going to happen. Damn it, damn it! Siren, you're a stupid, useless piece of shit. You can't even take care of a kid._

 _I don't know what to do._

 _He's in the hospital right now, but I don't know if he's going to be okay, the doctors here didn't do anything to assure me, and right now I can't even see him. I don't know what they're doing to him, I don't know if he's going to get better. I… I'm_ scared _. I'm scared I'm going to lose him. That I won't have the odd little wild boy around my home anymore. Even if I don't know how to take care of a kid, I want to be able to take care of him._

 _I don't want him gone._

* * *

 **Authors Note:** Can you tell I have no idea what would happen if a kid eats a bunch of cleaning chemicals, other than dying? Google was not much help in that regard.


	5. Mine

**Authors Note:** Yo, all, so you're getting the final chapter a couple of days early.

I want to say thank you to everyone who read, favorited, followed or reviewed this story. I had a lot of fun expanding the early days of Siren and Jacko together, and I'm happy that others enjoyed it too.

* * *

Siren wasn't sure how long she'd been waiting in the hospital. A half hour, a few hours? She dozed off a couple of times but always snapped herself back into attention, and if she didn't do it herself, the overwhelming anxiety and fear did it for her. She couldn't afford to sleep, not until she knew how Jacko was. What even would they be doing to him? A stomach pump, probably, right? She didn't really understand medicine the best.

She did know that it was optimal after digesting something poisonous to get the stomach pumped within thirty to sixty minutes, and any longer after that could run into some complications. Siren wasn't sure how long it had been before she even found Jacko sick on the floor. She still beat herself up over not noticing it earlier, over having left the products out where he could reach.

Anxiety coursed through her entire body.

She decided as she sat in the chair that she _hated_ this feeling of helplessness. This sense that she couldn't do _anything_ to help the boy.

Siren was used to being able to deal with anything that bothered her. If something was going on that she didn't like, it usually took a bit of water manipulation, either from outside source or internal source, to get rid of them and the problem would be solved. But this wasn't something she could fix with magic or through hurting others. This was a waiting game, and Siren wasn't good at waiting games.

Every time she saw a doctor or nure slip into the room, she prepared them to come to her, and let out a little growl when it was to others waiting instead. She wanted to know the news now, not wait another who knew how long. How long did it even take to pump a stomach?

She was gnawing her nails to stumps at this rate.

"Excuse me, Miss Kahale?" A man in a white coat approached her with a clipboard in hand. At hearing her name, Siren moved to stand up as the doctor came to stop before her. "You came here with the child, Jack Kahale, correct?"

Siren nodded mutely. She'd put down a fake name for Jacko during the paperwork, to try and protect him from potential witch hunters like DWMA. To protect him from the strange looks at the clearly not human name. At least her surname wasn't uncommon for humans and witches alike. "How is he doing? He's okay, right?" she asked quickly. If the answer was anything but... she wasn't going to react all that well. Handling bad news wasn't something she was great at.

He flipped through some pages he had on him, "He's doing great, you got him here quick enough that there was no lasting damage. We pumped his stomach of the chemicals and he should be on the road of recovery." he assured her as he read through some of the results, "We also found quite a number of parasites in his digestive system that we'll need to get rid of. We almost didn't catch it, he showed very few symptoms, but, his stomach and intestines were lined with them," he explained to her.

Parasites, huh? "It must have happened before I adopted him," Siren said, "Not making excuses, but, I've been feeding him foods that were properly cooked and prepared, and I know what he consumed before living with me wasn't exactly clean."

"Makes sense, it looked like they've been in him for a while." He shuffled through some more papers, "We're prescribing him medicine, make sure he takes it every morning and every evening."

He handed Siren a paper when he said that and a pen to sign it, she read through it a little before scrawling her signature on the line. "So long as it can make him better."

The doctor, Doctor Robertson she noted as she glanced at the name tag on his coat, nodded as she said that, "Yes, well, I'd also recommend being careful what he eats," he continued on, and she couldn't help but feel confusion. Why would she have to be more careful, did they find some allergy? He must have noticed her expression of concern, "We don't know for sure if it's a born trait or a result from the chemicals or parasites, but his body isn't able to properly break down sugars, as well as grease, in large quantities."

Siren nodded slowly, "Okay…" she murmured, "So no sugar or greasy foods. What's going to happen if he does eat any of it?"

"Nothing bad, don't worry. He'll just get sick and throw up a bit."

"Good, any medication for that?"

"None that we have, sorry."

Nodding again, the witch glanced to the hall where they had taken Jacko down earlier, "Is there anything else you need to tell me, or, can I go see him now?" She didn't mean to sound quite so impatient, but, her nerves were still a bit on end. She just wanted to see the kid, make sure, with her own eyes, that he was okay. Who knew if this doctor was lying or not.

The doctor flipped through the last of the papers and then shook his head in answer, "If there's anything else, we'll come find you to let you know," he replied, "Jack is in room 122, don't be too surprised if he's still sleeping."

"Okay, and thank you," Siren didn't bother waiting as she brushed past the doctor and made her way down the hall. Room One-Two-Two. Honestly, the man had taken far too long to talk and explain to her what was going on. But, she _was_ grateful that Jacko was doing better now, immensely.

She ignored the nurses and doctors she passed in her march past the rooms. One-Zero-Seven… One-One-Zero… Scanning the nameplates, he came to a full stop when she found the room she'd been directed too. Room 112.

Her heart became audible, beating inside her chest as she tentatively reached for the door, but it swung open before she could touch it and a nurse stepped out. The elderly woman took one look at Siren and her expression turned gentle.

"Be gentle with him," she said softly, moving to the side so Siren could get in, "He's still sleeping."

She nodded and swallowed hard. Of course she would be gentle.

Stepping into the room, she looked around the rather bland setup. Her eyes flickered over unplugged machines, an IV drip in use, the adjustable bed and the tiny child laying on it. She grabbed a chair and dragged it up to sit beside Jacko. He looked so peaceful sleeping like that, head propped up by a pillow and expression relaxed. It was a contrast to the clear pain he'd been in just hours before. Siren was biting her lip so heard it threatened to bleed.

Reaching over hesitantly, fearfully, Siren slowly took Jacko's small hand into her own. It was warm. Relief flooded through her heart, so powerful she felt like she could cry.

Siren rubs small circles in the back of Jacko's hand as she let her body relax and waited.

 _7\. A.M._

That's what the clock read when Siren dared look at it. Nurses came in now and then over the hours. Siren didn't move from her spot, not for food, not for a drink, not for anything. She kept a hold on Jacko's hand the entire time, as though if she let go he'd slip away from her again.

Siren felt her heart falter in her chest when she saw Jacko stir for the first time. Leaning forward, she held her breath and waited.

Green eyes blinked open.

"Jacko…" Siren breathed, jumping to her feet, joy rumbled in her chest, "Jacko, oh, thank God," she smiled wide, fighting back tears as she reached for his hands, for his face, wanting nothing more than to hold him in her arms.

He blinked at her and gave a weak smile, "S…Sih…rehn," he greeted with his slow and struggling speech.

"I'm here," she assured, grinning so hard her face was hurting. "I'm so happy you're okay. I was scared, so, so scared," she whispered, trailing the pads of her fingers along his face, dusting over the freckles on his cheeks and button nose. "No more… no more eating colorful liquids and powder in the kitchen, understand?" She was going to have to explain it better to him when they got home.

"Aaaru?"

"Aru," Siren returned as she got from her chair to sit on the bed, ignoring the IV tubes as she tugged the boy into her arms, "how do you feel?"

Jacko scrunched up his face and shook his head, "Grah!" he growled in what Siren could only assume was his way of saying 'I feel like shit' and massaged at his throat with his free hand. She really couldn't imagine him feeling like butterflies and roses after having a tube shoved down his throat and pumped with saline.

"Do you want anything?" Siren offered as she began running fingers through his pale hair, massaging his scalp, "Water, juice, milk?" some water from the Fountain of Time so she could stop this whole thing from happening?

He shook his head, burying his face in the crook of Sirens neck. A low rumble of a purr coming from him as he relaxed in her hug. It warmed her heart.

"Okay, we can stay like this a while more," Siren conceded with an easy expression, "I think I like this more, too." She waited a beat, then a few more before speaking. Just enjoying the silence and the hold, "I've decided," she said out loud.

The young sorcerer pulled back a bit, looking at her with innocent wide eyes, "Aaahra? Sih…rehn?"

She smiled, leaning down to press a kiss to his brow. "I've decided," she said again, "That you are mine. You are the only good thing in this world and you are mind." Hers, her Jacko, her child. There was more she wanted to say, more meaning behind them than possessive words.

The boy laughed, butting his head against her in that playful gesture of his, "Sih rehn!" he chirped cheerfully as he responded to her decision, "Sih rehn… es… Jah-o's!"

"Yeah," Siren agreed softly, "Siren is Jacko's and Jacko is Siren's. We need each other, so… let's not leave each other, okay?"

Her boy nodded and growled in return. Taking a deep breath, he let out a howl that had doctors and nurses rushing into the room to see what the commotion was of. Siren could only laugh at seeing the familiar energy and life in the boy despite having nearly poisoned himself to death.

Eventually, the doctors had to chase Siren out of the room so they could do some final checks on Jacko before he could be released and Siren needed to pick up his medication. She was in a good mood, far better than she'd ever been in.

They were family, that's what they were now. Her doubts and own fragile mind could stuff it, she had Jacko, and that was all that mattered.


End file.
